The Current State of Me

I’ve been meaning to post stuff more regularly, and have been astoundingly lazy about it. No excuses; I just get distracted by pretty shiny things called Facebook and Twitter. They are the bane of my existence, at least as a writer. But here I am, at 11:30 on a Saturday night, and I shall struggle against my addiction so that I might communicate once more with you, dear reader.

It’s been stressful around here. I need a real job. Like now. I’m redoubling my efforts with actor-friendly temp agencies around town. The temp world has changed a lot since I was a part of it in the late ’90s. Back then I just had to pick up the phone and within a day or two I’d have work. It might not be long-term, or even pleasant, but at least I’d get some bills paid. Now there is waiting. A lot of waiting.

While I wait I keep my fingers crossed that I might eventually book one or more of the many, many voice over gigs for which I’ve auditioned lately. It’s a new area for me, but one I think I could really succeed in… assuming I can actually book a gig. The competition is hardcore, but I feel like I’m just on the edge of breaking through here. I can’t afford to wait much longer, though.

So, while I wait for the phone to ring with promises of fame and fortune, or at least a couple days worth of data entry that will help me pay my phone bill, I try to write. Try is the operative word here. To a degree, I succeed, but not nearly to the degree I should.

One thing that gets me to write more is hearing from writers about writing. I started a Twitter list called “Writers & Writing” for that specific reason, although it is still more of a distraction than an inspiration. The writers I follow tend to use Twitter to goof off with each other and to communicate with their fans rather than talk about their craft. I’m not faulting them for it. Seriously, if you want a good time follow John Scalzi and Joe Hill on Twitter. They’re a riot. But you’re not going to learn much about writing.

I have found one thing that does work to get the mojo working: Podcasts. The one I’m following regularly right now is Mur Lafferty’s I Should Be Writing. Listening to her talk about her process, or the writing business, or her interviews, never fails to put me in a writin’ mood. If I ever publish a novel, I will have to thank her somewhere for it. I’m also currently reading her new book, The Shambling Guide to New York City. So far it is delightful.

I have several writing projects lined up right now, all for theatre. I sent my second draft of A Tale of Two Cities to my director last week, and we’re preparing to hold auditions in July. I’m busy working on my submission for this year’s Deathscribe horror radio play competition. I’ve got two more adaptations to write for my theatre company, one of which is slated for two years from now, and the other is one of those ideas that you just know is so good you need to make sure you get it done first because if you don’t do it somebody else definitely will. This second thing is less of a direct adaptation and more of a semi-original piece inspired by existing works. Sorry to be vague here, but neither of these projects have been officially announced yet, so I don’t want to give it away. Besides, the second one hasn’t even been slated, so there’s not much more I could say about it if I tried.

After that I’ve got a couple of other projects that currently only exist as a couple of sentences in a Word document, but I hope will one turn into plays on their own.

And speaking of plays, the other thing keeping me off the streets is The Three Musketeers, now in it’s second week of performances. I’m having a ball in this show. You all should come see it.

Huh. I sat down promising myself I’d crank out 250 words. I ended up with over 700. Thanks, Mur Lafferty!